Japeth’s 32 points lift Ginebra in ‘Christmas Clasico’
BOCAUE — Japeth Aguilar gave Barangay Ginebra and their diehards a wonderful Christmas present in the form of a career-best 32-point job that carried the team past the Star Hotshots, 86-79, in their PBA
Philippine Cup Christmas Day showdown before a cheering crowd of more than 23,000 at the Philippine Arena here.
Not wanting a blue Christmas, Aguilar came out as an energy force powering the Gin Kings to joint sixth place with the Hotshots, the Alaska Milk Aces and the Phoenix Fuel Masters at 3-3.
The super athletic 6-foot-9 center used his gift to the hilt, scoring from almost everywhere and snaring rebounds from both boards in a towering performance that allowed the Kings to make it three in a row
over the Hotshots in their keenly followed rivalry.
Much applauded was his great 5-of-5 three-point shooting, highlighting a 10-of-15 overall clip from the floor that went with 7-of-8 charities as he surpassed his previous career high of 29.
“Japeth has great form and great ability. We’ve long been encouraging him to take the treys,” said Ginebra coach Tim Cone.
Joe Devance and Scottie Thompson provided help with 17 points and 17 rebounds, respectively, as Ginebra stopped Star’s three-game streak and thus foiled the Hotshots’ bid at catching up with Rain or Shine
and TNT KaTropa at second place at 4-2.
But the Kings took a while to hurdle the Hotshots with solid games dished out by Paul Lee, Marc Pingris and Allein Maliksi.
“It was tough because Star’s been playing extremely well. Paul is really something,” said Cone.
But there’s no denying Ginebra and their fanatics of a merry Christmas in the end.
“I’ve been to Staples Center (home of the LA Lakers). I’ve never seen something like this. It was fun. It was amazing,” said Cone.
With Ginebra barely ahead midway through the fourth, Aguilar unleashed a crucial seven-point binge including a booming trey, giving them a 75-69 lead entering the homestretch.
In the final minute, he grabbed big defensive rebounds then nailed two charities to personally clinch the win.
POST GAME INTERVIEW
Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer & other 70+ titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am & share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.
